he year 1517 is recognized by most Christians as one that inaugurated
the Protestant Reformation and led to unparalleled divisions in Western
Christianity. For Franciscans, 1517 was also a year of division. It was
that year that Pope Leo X issued his papal bull Ite Vos that officially
divided the “first order” Franciscans into Conventuals and Observants
(the Capuchins were founded roughly a decade later).In recent years,
motivated by multiple factors, First Order Franciscans along with friars
from other Franciscan families, have increasingly sought to collaborate
in global initiatives and local ventures.Catholic Theological Union in
Chicago is one venue in which Franciscans in the United States have
collaborated, especially around issues of ministerial training and
formation. In 2017 and 2018 two distinctive events brought together
representatives from various Franciscan families for shared study and
reflection. These essays, collected from the presentations that
punctuated those two convenings, are brought together in this volume as
both testimony to and impetus for the ongoing collaboration of the
followers of Francis and Clare, affirming their common charism and
commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ they are professed to live.

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